20 Under £20 - My Best Cheap Beauty Buys

I started this off to test myself. It started off easily and then got harder. I've kept it in the order in which these came to me. Which means sometimes you'll be able to see my train of thought. I tried to keep it varied. I could probably name twenty great black liners for under £20 but I've limited myself - you all know I love MAC Smoulder so I've tried where necessary to go for something less obvious. For certain others, like the product that is first on the list, there is no question that it deserves it's place here. It's unrivalled. I've been recommending it for a decade or so.

What are your favourites? Have I missed anything you think deserves a place? Let me know down in the comments.

October Giveaway Winner

And the winner is... Kim Neville! Congratulations - this is a fantastic prize (i'm a little bit jealous). Please email me your address and I'll get them out to you as soon as possible.

Thank you to everyone who took part and see you back here in a couple of days for the next London Makeup Blog Turns 10 giveaway!

Inglot Gel Liner - Quick Review

This is a great liner. Long lasting, easy to use and with a lovely matte finish.




Enter the giveaway here

You can read my original review here

October Giveaway - LMB Turns 10

I'm really excited because I'm completely passionate about each of the prizes in this month. All three of them would come top in their categories for me: favourite lipstick, favourite gel liner and favourite liner brush.

The first is All Fired Up a retro matte lipstick from MAC and for me the perfect deep pink for those who want to wear a red lipstick but can't quite carry it off. It's long lasting and looks incredible and works well with a gloss over the top if a matte finish is not for you. I will be doing a quick review of this later in the month but in the meantime you can see and read my original review here. 

The Inglot AMC Gel Liner is a must for those who like their liner waterproof and long-lasting. It comes in a load of colours but of course for me it has to be as black and matte as possible. It's got a great, easy-to-apply and lasts all day. Another product to feature both in my pro and personal kits, I wrote a full review of it a while ago which you can read here.

10 Year Birthday Giveaway Details - Friday Video

So finally here are the details of how I will be celebrating the blogs 10 year birthday in 2016

Friday Video - UMA Expo 2015 Vlog

It's a bit wobbly and I'm panting the whole time but I thought it would be nice to get a feel for this for those who were thinking of attending and didn't for whatever reason. I really love it and highly recommend it...

Monday's Make-up Muse - Jane Russell

from Gentlemen Prefer Blondes

God I love Jane Russell. Everything about her. I'm even willing to overlook some of her beliefs that I don't necessarily agree with (she was a pro-life born-again Christian) because in a way they kind of emphasise her awesomeness. A great actress who spent her career living in the shadow of her more famous assets she was always the right side of tasteful and classy whilst having enough nous and sass to do what she needed to do to forge a successful career in the 1950s. The best example of this is the secret binning of the famous bra Howard Hughes had made for her to wear during the filming of The Outlaw and instead yanking her bra straps up for a little elevation. She knew what needed to be done, but she was going to do it her way.

with Marilyn Monroe

She was also not a classic 1950s movie star. At 5'7" she was taller than most of her contemporaries and never compromising on being a beautiful brunette (with occasional forays into red). As Dorthory Shaw she is the reason that Gentlemen Prefer Blondes is one of my favourite films - the outfits, the sass, the make-up. I love Marilyn too of course, but I feel I'm more Dorothy than Lorelei - and she's an unusually feisty lady to see in films of that time.

The fabulous thing about Jane Russell's beautiful brunette colouring is she could carry off a strong red lip, minimal eye make-up and her defined brows held the whole look together and was a style she carried through to old age. Her whole look is the classic pin-up, which is what she was for many US soldiers during the Second World War

Jane Russell Make-up Must Haves

Brows - Always defined, I suspect her of having pretty good, strong brows naturally but for those of you who need to cheat it then Anastasia Beverly Hills Dip Brow is fantastic as are the Brow Whizz pencils.

©Luke Ford

Eyes - usually a nude shadow with a black liner flick. She actually had quite hooded lids so a classic feline liner is perfect for her eye shape - if you like to use a gel then I love Inglot AMC Eyeliner Gel.  To create a cats eye effect then corner lashes will elongate any eye - I love the Betty False Strip Lashes from The Vintage Cosmetics Company. The Tanya Burr Everyday Flutter lashes and the Ardell Accent Lashes (301) would also work.

Skin - not too heavy, with a natural finish but pretty perfect. I think Dior Star Fluid Foundation would be great for this. She has some light, cream contouring so either use a foundation in a slightly darker shade than your usual or try out the House of Glam Dolls Glam Base Wheel. Slight blush on the cheeks - I'd go for MAC powder blush in Harmony or Gingerly, but again, you need to suit your skin tone.

Lips - Jane Russell was able to carry off blue and orange reds but you'll know best what suits you. For more orange shades then NARS Satin Lip pencil in Timanfaya or Topshop's Lipstick in Headrush. For bluer reds, her more usual shade, then Estee Lauder Pure Colour Envy in Envious or Chanel Rouge Allure in Pirate is a classic. My favourite liners that work with most reds are MAC lip liner in Redd and Half-Red.

Friday Video - Face of the Day 23rd September 2014

A nightmare to edit because I talked so much but I like the end result!

Products Used:

Embryolisse Lait Cream Concentrate
Kiko Face Skin Glow
Dior Star Fluid Foundation in 020
MAC Eye Kohl in Powersurge
Maybelline Big Eyes Eyeshadow in Luminous Brown
Inglot Gel Liner in Black 77
Yves Rocher Sexy Pulp Mascara in Black
Daniel Sandler Eye Shadow Brush
Kiko Rock Attraction Blush in Sound Coral
Cover FX Loose Setting Powder in Translucent
Sleek Makeup Luminous Pressed Powder in 01
Real Techniques Brushes
Elizabeth Arden 8 Hour Lip Protectant Stick in Berry

Friday Video - Amped Up Pink Bridal

I bought some Maybelline 24hr Tattoo Eye Cream in Pink Gold for a bridal client I have so I've used it here to create a bridal look with a slightly more dramatic liner. Pink is a great colour for all eye colours but especially green and blue eyes. Use with Teddy liner by MAC if you'd rather have a softer liner.

I would love it if you would check out and subscribe to my YouTube channel.

 Products Used:

Embroylisse Lait Cream Concentrate
MAC Face and Body Foundation in N2
Maybelline 24hr Tattoo Cream Eye Colour in Pink Gold
L'Oreal Colour Appeal in Golden Rose
Sleek Makeup Contour Kit in Light
Inglot Gel Liner in 77 Black
Max Factor Masterpiece Mascara in Black
Chanel Soleil Tan de Chanel
Ben Nye Blush Palette
MAC Lip Liner in Barely Bare
Daniel Sandler Invisible Blot Powder

Some of my favourite things from 2013

Thank you so much to all those who took part in my huge Christmas Giveaway. I have to say I was slightly daunted by giving something away for 24 days in a row but it actually went really well and I was really pleased I did it so thank you everyone who entered. Due to the giveaway and Christmas and powercuts I failed to film any videos over Christmas and was about to fail to do so again due to poor-hair-maintenance related vanity and my forgetfulness (me in London, camera tripod in Hampshire) but I thought 'that is no way to start 2014' so here it is in all it's bad hair and rambley glory.

If you don't already do so I would love it if you'd subscribe to my channel and leave me a comment either on what you loved in 2013 or letting me know what videos you'd like me to do in the future. I hope that you are all having a wonderful start to your year - I know there's a lot of resolving and detoxing going on but I personally think you can decide to make a change at any time of year and you get a new do-over ever day so if you haven't had a great beginning to the year then just shake it off and start again.

For those who are interested in Give and Makeup their website is here and anyone wanting to join in the New Year New You Style Project check out all the details on Modern Mummy.

Products Shown:

MAC Retro Matte Lipstick in All Fired Up (sadly no longer available but you could try eBay)
Elizabeth Arden 8hr Lip Protector in Berry
Liz Earle Signature Lip Colour in Hibiscus and Damask Rose
Hourglass Opaque Rouge Liquid Lipstick in Rose
Bobbi Brown Foundation in 3.5 Warm Beige
Charlotte Tilbury Filmstar Bronze and Glow
Inglot Gel Liner in 77
Emma Hardie Amazing Face Cleansing Balm
Nuxe Crème Fraiche de Beaute Enriche - 24Hr Soothing and Moisturising Rich Cream 50ml
Darphin Intral Toner
St Grape Aqua Bliss Scrub
Nip + Fab Tummy Fix
Pukka love tea

Friday Video - October Favourites

Inglot Gel Liner
Daniel Sandler Blending Brush
Elizabeth Arden 8 Hour Lip Balm
Champneys Scrub
Terre D'Hermes

Inglot AMC Eyeliner Gel

Inglot have been around for a while now and although I have a list of their products I'm keen to try I never seem to be able to have the list, the shop and the time all at once. The colours are spectacular - for those make-up butterflies out there this could be the brand for you and it's really not unreasonably priced.

So what made me take the plunge? Well I bought their AMC Eyeliner Gel on the spur of the moment when I went to Olympia Beauty a month ago. The discounts there are spectacular and even though I got this liner for an amazing £7 I would gladly pay double that and not bat an eye (sorry... ). They do a really inspiring range of colours in this liner too so don't feel the need to stop at the black - yellow, green, blue, purple, pink. Pretty much all colours are covered in this line.

Why do I love it so? Well it's matte and I pretty much want to wear matte things ALL THE TIME at the moment. It also glides on, I know that's what they all say but it really does literally glide straight on making it really easy to use for those who aren't accustomed to using gel liner and really fantastically quick for use for those who are. It is also almost impossible to get off without the help of some form of make-up remover - annoying if you make a mistake (but fine if you have Bioderma and a cotton bud to hand) amazing if you want a liner that is going to last allll day (or allll night). Now to Westfield to try out more, more, more from Inglot. Waterproof and crease-proof, the only downside is that it will dry out eventually once opened (6 mths +) but then, show me a gel liner that doesn't. This would be perfect for those who were a flick liner everyday.

What You Need to Know - Inglot AMC Eyeliner Gel

• £13
• 5.5g
• 29-32 colours available (depending on your country)
• Waterproof and creaseproof
• Hypoallergenic
• Available worldwide from Inglot.com

Autumn/Winter Wedding Guest Make-up - Friday Video

I've had to refilm this three times due to camera teething problems and it's still not great but you get the general idea. I love doing my make-up when I'm off to an autumn/winter wedding as I feel I can go a bit more full-on than I would in summer. I also got to use my Clarins face powder, the smell of which reminds me of being young - I love it.

Products used:

Praeme Harmony Balm
Nars Sheer Glow in Santa Fey
Chanel Vitalumier Aqua in 10 Beige
Benefit Creaseless Cream Shadow/Liner in Skinny Jeans
Urban Decay Naked Palette
Inglot Gel Liner in 77
Avon Supershock Gel Liner in Black
Benefit Bad Gal Lash
L'Oreal Brow Artist in 03 Brunette
Illmasqua Cream Pigment in Hollow
Benefit Sugabomb
MAC Pro-Wear Lip Pencil in Dynamo
MAC Retro Matte Lipstick in All Fired Up
MAC Lipstick in Impassioned
Laura Mercier Secret Brightening Powder
Clarins Face Powder
Real Techniques Brushes

Inglot Gel Liner - Product of the Week

I got this on the spur of the moment at Olympia Beauty and it has shot straight to the top of my favourite eyeliner list. Blackest, black and beautifully matte it really does glide on and lasts for ages. If you want a professional looking feline flick then Inglot Gel Liner is the product for you. Full review to follow...

And here it is my full review